Trash can fire, gas leak prompts evacuations

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SAN DIEGO – Several homes in the Rolando area were evacuated early Monday morning after firefighters responded to a trash can fire potentially caused by a gas leak, authorities said.
Dispatchers received a call around 12:45 a.m. from a person who reported seeing a trash can on fire near a residence in the 3900 block of Loma Alta Drive, according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.
Crews responded to the home and quickly doused the blaze but learned that the fire had affected a gas meter nearby, a fire department dispatch supervisor said.
Twenty homes in the area with about 30 residents were evacuated, authorities said.
Residents were allowed to return to their homes by 2:50 a.m., the dispatch supervisor said. No injuries were reported.
The rupture caused an outage at the residence where the trash can was on fire and as of 5 a.m. crews remained at the scene making repairs, San Diego Gas & Electric spokeswoman Jessica Packard said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.